


Mirror, Mirror

by inkless



Category: RWBY
Genre: Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Friendship, Gen, Growing Up
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-07
Updated: 2016-12-07
Packaged: 2018-09-07 00:46:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8776432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inkless/pseuds/inkless
Summary: The woman in the mirror appeared after her Mother's death. She said Weiss could change the world.





	

**Author's Note:**

> First and last time I put annotations at the top.
> 
> A thing I think needs to be written: I haven't watched season 4. I watched the ending of season 3, not the whole thing. I relied on the wiki and my memory of season 1 and 2. I figured that if I don't get at least one chapter out, I would never motivate myself to write the rest. And, cliche excuse incoming, English is not my first language.

 

She needed to breathe, to calm her stressed heart before the mask of confidence she had maintained during this whole ordeal broke beneath the pressure.

There were expectations she had to uphold. To never show fear, to never hesitate. Weakness had no place in someone like her. And the public hidden somewhere in the room certainly followed those beliefs.

So she dragged her recovery as much as she could, slowly lifting her head, eyes closed, in hope that the delay gave her enough time to finally squash the last pieces of worry residing in her mind.

It was easy. She had experience. When you are part of a family like hers, with so much bad press associated with its members, true or not, the perception of security, of power, that people had about them kept danger relatively in check.

Still, moments like this, her future on the line, made her appreciate certain life decisions even more.

One, in particular.

It started as a passing comment, a little idea uttered by one of the constantly shrinking number of people close to her, from the ones that weren't family, part of the small group that, with fear for them, she called friends.

She didn't understand, at first, the reason behind the odd suggestion. Not that it deserved much thought at the time.

Then the years passed, bringing with them the reality of her world. The bubble she had lived all those years busted, broken by the looks, the words, the insults, the hate. All from people she didn't even knew.

They wanted to see the pain, to watch how weak the future of the SDC really was.

It worked, but less so every time. She grew older, refined, confident.

The motive became clear.

"Sing"

Once again she put the skills collected to good use, opening her eyes, determination in them, to face whatever the future had in store. Good or bad, she would confront it with all her might, never backing down.

Weakness had no place in someone like her.

She saw white. Particles of dust all around her, floating in the air, like stars in the night sky, shining with the light passing through the glass.

It reminded her the snow that covered the gardens back at home every winter, she watching it fall from behind the windows of her room, curled up in the bed's sheets while listening to the tales of her eternal companion.

The shriek of rusty metal refusing to move brought her back to reality.

Father entered, four guards behind. Two remained by the doors, stopping them from closing. The others, a respectable distance away from his person.

Her head felt hot for some reason.

"Weiss," he saluted. No praise, no worry. Dull. She didn't expect something else, not from him anyway. It would have felt nice though.

"Father." A bow. Show respect. Don't let him intimidate you. The man oozed power and wanted recognition. She was happy to provide it. It would be stupid of her to antagonize him. "I have defeated the Armor. I passed your test."

Hand behind his back, his eyes inspecting her up and down. "You did."

"As per our deal, I'll be attending Beacon, I'll train to be a Hunter and You'll not interfere." A twitch from her hand, something falling down the side of her face.

A nod. "Simplified, but yes, those were the terms." He waved his hand. The guards by his side moved behind her. "Escort Weiss to her room." Turning around, the man walked to the exit. Before leaving, he looked back. He stared at her. "Treat her injuries first."

Weiss hand touched her head. She inspected it. Red.

"We should treat that cut, Miss Schnee," one of the guards said.

She didn't move until the silhouette of her father disappeared among the shadows. And just for those seconds, Weiss smiled.

 

* * *

 

If someone were to ask what Weiss thought of her little trip to the infirmary, formal would be an apt word to express her feelings. Silent a close second.

She didn't blame the guards for keeping things distant between them. Tasked with assuring the well being of the heir of one of the biggest companies in the world, under the watchful eye of the president, her father no less, must be putting a lot of pressure on people not accustomed with bearing such responsibility.

Keeping that in mind, the obvious remarks and shallow questions along the way made sense.

"The gardens have some lovely flowers"

"I saw them when I arrived. Yes, they are quite pretty"

It still felt a little insulting how much they tried not to made her angry. She wasn't going to go to Father and cry how mean his guards had been.

Even then, she preferred this stupid exchange of words to any other more meaningful discussion. Because it was safe, easy to navigate through.

Father, no doubt wanting to know more about her intentions, surely ordered his soldiers to find out anything about her request. _Winter_ had asked, so the assumption must not be too far off.

That fact turned any interaction into a dessert covered in mines. With her trying not to step on them.

The worry was welcome. It proved that despite the lack of warm between them, her father loved her nonetheless. But it brought a series of problems that threatened to shoot down all the progress accomplished in the last month.

"The cut will disappear in a couple of days." the man in white stated. He threw a piece of red cotton to a trash can. "If it's not too personal, do you think you'll be fine in Beacon, miss. I'd been told they are complete slave workers when it comes to training."

Mainly, the constant probing from employees fishing for information.

Weiss fixed him a look. She didn't miss the flinch. "I am not weak."

They wanted doubt. A sign showing that Weiss Schnee didn't know what she was doing, or, at the very least, not prepared to confront the challenge.

The man sighed. "If you say so, miss Schnee." And opened the exit. "Remember to change the patch. Good night."

"Good night."

Not that they will get anything from her.

Her escorts saluted her as she stepped into the hall. Weiss nodded back. They started walking. She followed suit.

Everyone remained silent after that. No need to pretend they cared about what the other had to say, not now that the moon took the sun's place in the sky, and the comfortable image of a bed attracted them like bees to flowers.

Weiss watched the garden pass by her through the windows. A face in the glass caught her attention. White hair, bored blue eyes, lips completely straight.

The woman saw her staring and moved her head, pointing to the guards.

"Miss Schnee, we are here. Everything fine?" One of them asked, gaining her attention. The mask hid his features, precluding her from reading his intentions, an automatic reaction born from surprise.

"Yes, don't worry. Just looking the flowers. They are lovely, remember?"

"I do." His hand went to the handle. With a click, the door opened. "This is your room. I hope it is to your liking." He stepped away.

"Thank you." A bow. "Good night." And inside.

 

* * *

 

It was a small room, unlike her own. Simple too, without the exaggerated decorations and oversized furniture she usually lived with. The most remarkable thing about it was the chandelier in the middle of the roof, quite the complicated ornament for the otherwise unremarkable place, and the bench, mirror in the middle, for the morning makeup.

Charming, nonetheless. She approved.

With light steps, reflection of the tired state of her body, Weiss made her way to the wardrobe next to the solitary window. She couldn't help but notice the carpet's odd patterns, an intricate imitation of the SDC logo.

Father's signature, she supposed. The man didn't shy away from petty luxuries.

She opened the wardrobe's doors to reveal a single pajama, an almost gray, dress like piece of clothing she had grown accustomed to wear since her childhood, accompanied by a clean replacement of her usual attire.

She closed the curtains before slipping in her nightly garments. Weiss didn't believe anyone would dare enter the proximity of the castle unannounced, not with the tight security surrounding the place. And if they did, hell will descend upon them. Still, it payed to be secure.

One more thing to do.

Sitting in front of the mirror, she began. "Good night. I hope the spectacle was of your liking."

Her reflection morphed, a swirl of white giving place to the face of a woman. Older, but so similar to her, like the future decided to spoil the person she would grow up to be. "I guess I should have expected this reaction," the lady said, eyes bored. "Good Night, Weiss. May I explain myself."

"Yes!" Arms crossed, brows frowning. "You didn't assist me in the arena. May I remind you of the dangers of my death."

The woman challenged her stare. "Your father would have stopped the fight."

"I know." Weiss conceded. She sighed. "But that is not the point." Her eyes closed. Both remained mute for a few seconds. "Why didn't you help me?"

"It was a test for you, not for me." So much like Winter. Firm, strict, with an intensity that could break mountains without even raising her voice. "If you want to attend Beacon, you should be capable of defending yourself without my aid." The woman expression relaxed, loving gaze in place. So much like mother. Protective, kind, destroying any anger that opposed her. "Weiss, if your life is ever in danger, I will make sure you get through. Promise. But this wasn't the case."

Blue peeked. "You'll make it up to me." Not a request.

"Depends. What do you want?"

A finger up. "A warning. Don't send me to a fight believing you will cooperate." Two fingers. "Advice would be nice."

The lady smiled. "Keep an eye on your dust."

"Not really helpful."

A laugh. "Are you sure? A kid may get a hold of the crystals and blow you up with them."

"Not funny."

“It is to me”

“You have an odd sense of humor.”

“I blame my age.”

“I hope mine doesn’t become tainted.” A yawn. “We must make preparations for the trip.”

“You are tired.” The lady pointed out. “We’ll organize what we need during the week, it can wait.” With a hand, she signaled the bed. “Go to sleep, Weiss.”

She obeyed. The discussion could continue tomorrow, both with a more clear mind.

"I am proud," Weiss heard behind her.

Happy dreams.

 

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is it. Tell me what you think.  
> I hope you enjoyed it.
> 
> Changelog:  
> 2016-12-06: "If you want to be attend beacon" Fixed this  
> 2016-12-07: More typos.  
> 2016-12-14: Even more typos. Added a couple more lines near the end.  
> 2016-12-27: Added a bit more of dialogue at the end. Small adjustments.


End file.
